Back in 2015 the fields at the Onekaka farm were left bare. They had once been grandpa’s experimental maize crop, a pine forest, grazing for cattle and sheep and more recently home to Felisardo, my mothers Spanish Andalusian Stallion. We didn’t really know what it was good for, apart from effortlessly growing the most magnificent crop of gorse.

One morning we found a beautiful wild apple tree growing up through the gorse and the idea was born. We ripped down the fences and put in the first 400 heritage apple cider trees we had managed to scrounge from Invercargill to the Far North. We bought whatever we could get our hands on, ending up with 13 different cider apple varieties.

Soon, however it dawned upon us we knew nothing about apple growing or cider making.

During the first year the trees took turns at falling over. We propped them up the best we could. I googled “how to prune” but our trees weren’t like the other apples you see driving through Riwaka. They never obeyed the central leader style. Instead they grew their own little knotty structures, randomly fruiting as if at will.

The Kingston Blacks grew very slowly if at all and only ever produce about a handful of fruit each year, despite every foliage spray, soil conditioner and gentle whisper we’ve given them. These days they’ve started cropping proper. Growing fruit takes time, dedication and patience.